Worst nightmare or good business?

Here’s the deal about Kroger coming to town: The last thing they’d want to do is strip what you love about Harris Teeter and take it downscale.

That’s what went through my head as I read comment after angry comment from Harris Teeter fanatics on their Facebook page following the announcement that Cincinnati-based Kroger Co. agreed to buy the Matthews, N.C.-based chain.

Kroger is not a nameless, faceless acquisition entity.

This was probably the best outcome for Harris Teeter. Did fans want their beloved chain to be gobbled up by an investment firm?

When I think of Kroger banners I’ve visited across the U.S., I think of the differences I encounter. A Fred Meyer is not a Ralphs and neither of those is a King Soopers.

Contrast that to Pleasanton, Calif.-based Safeway’s banners, for example.

A Safeway in Oakland, Calif., looks exactly the same — from the orchard bins to the faux wood floors — as a Randalls in Cedar Park, Texas, a Von’s in Newport Beach, Calif., or a Dominick’s in Chicago.

They are disappointingly similar. Sometimes, when I go visit a new town to look at retailers and I’m short on time, I skip Safeway because I know what I’m going to get.

Please, someone tell me I’m wrong and I’ll happily change my tune.

Many in the angry Facebook mob were concerned about losing their beloved double coupon program, and they may have a point. Kroger — and many other retailers nationwide — has been slowly dropping the program over the past few years.

These programs, while enormously popular with a select number of consumers, typically aren’t used by the majority.

But one shopper told her local newspaper it was her “worst nightmare come true.”

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About the Author:

Pamela Riemenschneider, Editor

Pamela Riemenschneider has been with The Packer Newspaper for the past 11 years, and editor of sister publication Produce Retailer Magazine since 2009. During her time with Farm Journal Media, she’s traveled all over North America and Europe visiting grocery operations, from single-store fruit stands to national chain supermarkets. She focuses on retail and consumer trends, packaging, new products and in-store operations to help retailers build exceptional produce categories. She also produces a video series from her Austin, Texas, home, “Pamela’s Kitchen,” where she does first-hand reviews of new products, often featuring her two sons, Ike and Uli.